


The Demon and the Raven (Unlikely friendship)

by MichiesVoidofWriting



Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: I word vomited this entire story, Luz and Eda are barely mentioned, Luz makes her first speaking appearance in chapter three, My head said King and Lilith bonding, These two would eventually be friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-06
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-16 17:08:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28585476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MichiesVoidofWriting/pseuds/MichiesVoidofWriting
Summary: A one-shot collection of King and Lilith being friends.
Relationships: Lilith Clawthorne & King
Comments: 12
Kudos: 49





	1. A Straightener, a Conversation, and an Understanding

**Author's Note:**

> I ended up word vomiting this fic on Tumblr and decided to post it here. It would be interesting to see how these two would interact when season 2 starts and I think out of everyone in the house, Lilith would probably be more drawn to King for not only their similarities, but he's the only member of the household she didn't directly hurt or target. But that's just me thinking too much into stuff.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lilith tried to straighten her hair and it doesn't go as planned

Lilith had said nothing when King entered the bathroom and sat on top of the counter watching her as she straightened her hair. She knew if the demon wanted a conversation, then he would be the one to start it.

A few minutes passed and Lilith suddenly felt exposed due to not only the heavy silence between herself and the demon but the big eyes that were watching her every move with interest... as if she was being evaluated.

"Do you need something?" Lilith questioned, breaking the silence as she straightened a random strand of hair.

"Why do you straighten it?" King had titled his head to the side, eyes narrowed in confusion. "It's a lot of work."

"Because I prefer it that way." It was an honest answer, but it's not like he could tell.

"Why?"

"What?" Lilith paused halfway down the strand of curly hair. She moved her eyes from the mirror to the demon staring at her curiously.

"Why do you like it?" He shrugged as if his question was self-explanatory.

"It's much easier to work with," Lilith grumbled when she noticed she held the flat iron on the strand too long and there was now a dent in her hair.

"But you're in here for hours trying to straighten it," King noted and the witch tried her best not to snap at him as she worked on evening out the dent. "How is it easier to work with?"

"For one, it's usually harder to tangle. Two, it's easier to keep out of my face. Lastly, I see no reason to change it." She allowed a small rare smile of victory to fall onto her face, satisfied the dent was gone.

"Oh, so is that why you dyed it?"

King jumped in surprise when Lilith let out a curse and nearly slammed the flat iron into the bathroom counter. There was a small angry red mark on the bottom of her right ear and the demon offered an unusual sympathetic glance. He would've laughed at her misfortune but the reaction the question prompted made him curious.

"I'm sorry, demon, what was the question?" The witch absentmindedly asked as she gingerly rubbed the mark on her ear to soothe it. She had picked up the straightener and continued her work as if nothing had happened.

"I remember Eda showing me pictures of you and her when you two were younger. You had red hair..." he noticed the way her hand seemed to tightly grip the handle of the flat iron and the slight narrowing of her eyes. "So I was wondering-"

"Why I dyed it," Lilith finished the question as if it left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"Yeah...why not leave it with its natural color?"

"It was too eye-catching." The witch explained as she grabbed a clump of hair to straighten. "Plus, no one would take a young witch with bright curly red hair seriously."

"So you dyed it to look more...intimidating?" The demon glanced up at her eyes with a sympathetic, yet knowing look.

"Precisely."

"Huh."

"May I ask why the sudden interest?"

"You've been constantly disappearing around the same time each morning and I wanted to see what you were up to. Didn't think you were fighting your hair every morning." King shrugged as he voiced his distrust and examined the worn cord of Lilith's flat iron, "I thought you would be doing a daily brooding session or plotting to stab us in the back so you could get your job back."

Lilith froze as she was suddenly shoved back into her final days as the head of the Emperor's Coven.

**_"I will not be healing her."_ **

**_"B_ ** **_ut, you promised me."_ **

**_"_ ** **_Don't be so naive, Lilith. This is the Titan's will. All wild witches must be dealt with before the day of unity. You understand, don't you?"_ **

**_"Of course..."_ **

_**"Good.** _ _**"** _

_**"Oh, one more thing. Destroy the Owl Lady's staff. She won't be needing it anymore."** _

The flat iron had fallen from her hand and Lilith stepped back, her eyes wide and her breaths far too fast to be normal. She could still hear his voice.

"Lilith!" King shouted in alarm the second the witch collided with the wall and slumped to the floor.

"I-it's fine...I'm fine. I'm fine." Why couldn't her hands stop shaking? She closed her eyes and inhaled and exhaled slowly, repeating an in for four, hold for four, out for four pattern.

King kept a careful eye on her until she felt comfortable enough to open her eyes and her rapids breaths had evened out.

"What was that?" King questioned as he scooted closer to her.

"Nothing, demon," she snapped a little too harshly as she got up from the floor and grabbed her straightener "Don't worry about it."

"I am going to worry about it, because I've never seen you react like that to anything," King huffed as he climbed back onto the counter. "If you-"

"I'm not going to talk about it." Lilith glared at him as she began to touch up the strands of her hair that were already straightened.

"Well, talk to Eda then," King's voice was hard.

"I am not going to drag her into this. She had nothing to do with it," Lilith argued as she angrily grabbed a large strand of hair that was still in its natural state.

"You hurt Luz, and cursed Eda." King angrily growled at her, "She has everything to do with it considering you spent the month trying to capture her!"

"You have no idea what you're talking about, demon," Lilith hissed as she slammed her straightener on the counter to level him with a glare.

"Really? Because from my point of view, everything you've done involves Eda. Ever since the Covention every time you came into her life it was to convince her to join you in the coven and we see how well that worked out!"

"I tried to get her to join of her own free will. But she's too stubborn for her own good-"

"Just admit it! You were selfish and were way in over your head!"

"My hand was forced, I didn't have a choice!"

"Yes, you did! You could've left. You easily could've quit and walked away."

"If you truly think that, then you're dumber than I assumed." Lilith sighed in defeat and her voice dropped, "No one can walk away from the Emperor without consequences."

King blinked in surprise as a haunted look seemed to linger in Lilith’s eyes. He didn't think there could've been another reason for her working to capture Eda. Sure, he knew the original plan. Lilith had believed that Belos would heal Eda from the curse that Lilith had placed on her sister when they were kids but only if Eda joined the coven. Belos lied to her and that's why Lilith turned on him.

"What do you mean?" He asked uneasily as Lilith frowned and stared down at the sink.

"There is no quitting. The only way I would be able to leave was either retirement or dismissal from Belos himself." The witch closed her eyes as Belos' words came back to haunt her.

_**"But, if you fail, you'll be stripped of your rank and banished from my coven. You do know what happens to covenless witches, don't you?"** _

"But I'm years away from retirement."

It suddenly clicked in the demon's head. He remembered before Lilith had actually made an effort to capture Eda, she freaked out about losing the game. _She couldn't return empty-handed._ There was the moment when he and Lilith were going to be taken up to be Petrified alongside Eda, but Belos had quickly addressed his former coven leader. He remembered Belos' parting words of how she _chose the wrong side._

It now seemed odd how easily Belos cut ties with the head of his coven...dismissing her as if she could easily be replaced.

"He...he forced you to go after Eda..." King's eyes widened in realization, "Belos hurt you."

"Call it what you will, threatening, manipulation," Lilith waved a dismissive hand. "Doesn't change my actions. Doesn't change that I cursed my sister or hurt the hu-Luz. Belos had no part in that."

"But you were under his influence. H-he had you trapped. You were a tool to him. He used you to get what he wanted and then tossed you away!" King was shaking the witch’s forearms with his paws as too many realizations came too fast for him to process.

"Don't fret, demon." Lilith patted his head as she continued to stare at the sink. "I've always been expendable." A soft sigh escaped her. "I dedicated my entire life to the coven, and look at me now," she scoffed in disgust as she lifted her head up to glare at her reflection. "I've broken my fragile bond with my sister, I've crossed lines that never should be crossed. I realized that my dream job was a nightmare in disguise. I've destroyed everything around me."

"I know what's that like... to lose everything you took pride in. To be alone."

"I-"

"People look down on you. See it easy to use you and then turn their backs when you no longer fit their needs." He placed his paws against the back of her hands, "We're actually not that different, y'know. I've hurt people too to get what I wanted."

"Don't compare your mistakes to mine." Lilith scoffed but moved her hand to pat the top of his head, "You could never measure up to my terrible decisions."

"You set the standard pretty high," the demon mumbled but smiled when he saw the corner of Lilith's lip turn up.

"Thank you for that obvious fact." There was a scoff but amusement was laced behind it.

Seeing the conversation had reached a suitable conclusion, Lilith moved to accomplish her original goal and let out a sigh as she realized attempting to straighten the other half of her hair would be in vain as the day was already halfway over.

"Demon, would you mind leaving?" Lilith asked as she unplugged the flat iron and set it to cool on the counter.

"Nope. I'll see you downstairs," the demon responded by hopping off the counter and onto the floor. He was practically out of the bathroom when Lilith's voice stopped him from leaving.

"Oh, and King?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

* * *

When Lilith came downstairs about half an hour later, the demon smirked to himself as she sat at the table with him.

"You're hair looks poofy."

"It's a mess."

"But it's a nice mess."

"Still a mess."

"The King of Demons care not for messes. It's poofy."

"Why does that matter?"

"Because I want to nap in it. Can I nap in it?"

"Can you _what_?"


	2. Another Conversation, Hobby talks, and an Unlikely Heart to Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> King learns of Lilith's baking hobby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one day cuz I wrote them practically back to back on Tumblr. It was another word vomit fic I didn't plan on but my mind said otherwise.

She heard the soft footsteps and the door softly creaking open, but she wasn't aware of his presence until the demon had decided to climb onto the bed and dramatically flop into her lap.

"I take it the lesson was cut short?" Lilith ran a hand through his fur sympathetically as she bookmarked the page of the book she was on.

"Eda needed Luz for something." King sighed softly through his nose with a low grumble, "So yes," he huffed, "my lesson was cut short. Stupid time restrictions."

"Pity. I rather enjoy hearing your ranting," the witch shrugged as she began to lightly scratch around his collar.

"Because it's _cute_?" The was a scoff, irritation, and defeat easily heard as Lilith had mastered that specific tone herself.

"Because you're passionate about it." Lilith raised her eyebrow as if her answer was the most obvious thing in the world and the demon shot his head up in surprise.

"Wheh?"

"I hear you teaching the-Luz. The way you dive into history as if it's the most interesting thing, and how excited you get when she asks questions," the witch shrugged. "It reminds me of when Edalyn was younger and she used to break down my door to tell me her newest prank, or how I'll hear Luz excitedly telling Edalyn about some story she created."

"And what about you?" King stood up to look into her mismatched eyes, "It doesn't remind you of anything you do? Do you even do anything?"

"Not exactly." Lilith waved a dismissive hand, "I never became exactly _...passionate_ about anything. I've spent most of my life searching for a way to cure the curse and follow Belos around like a mindless puppet."

"We should change that." King gave a disgusted scoff, "You need a hobby."

"I have-"

"Sitting in your room in the dark, brooding like a crow, doesn't count as a hobby."

"I'm not _brooding_. And I do-"

"Neither does checking out a handful of books on curses so you can avoid Eda and Luz by reading."

"It's beneficial."

"It's sad."

"It works. And last I checked, reading _does_ count as a hobby."

"Not in your case." King patted her face, "Now, come forth. The King of Demons demands you find a decent hobby that will force you to interact with people."

"I'm talking to you, aren't I?" Lilith raised an eyebrow as the demon set himself on her shoulder.

"I mean someone other than me," he rolled his eyes as he gently whacked her head.

"Do you think the insufferable house demon would mind the company?"

"Lilith."

"Hm?"

"No."

"Fine."

* * *

"Nyeh!" King hopped onto the kitchen counter, mindful of the large amount of ingredients around him. "You never told me that you baked! I could've been guilting you into making me sweets this whole time!"

"I said I had a hobby," Lilith offered a rare smirk as she poured the batter into the cupcake tray.

"I didn't think you were serious!" The demon yelled incredulously.

"Well, I can't exactly blame you." The witch shrugged as she took the empty bowl in her hands to the sink. "I'm not the most open book."

"So why baking?"

"It required precision," Lilith explained as she filled the bowl with water so it would be easier to clean later. "Everything needed to be exact or it would turn out wrong. Eventually, I got used to the recipes and managed to experiment more."

"Ever do potion making? Or did that blow up in your face too?"

"I stopped making potions unless it was necessary. I had all these different concoctions and not a clue what do with them so I stopped."

"So baking was more useful to you because you could do something with it... like throw pies at people."

"Exactly... minus the pie thing." Lilith shrugged as she glanced at the timer on the oven, "It's a good hobby to pass the time."

"A delicious one too," King nodded his head.

"So what caused you to take up demonology?" The witch had leaned her back against the island to face him with a blank look on her face.

"What kind of question is that?"

"Most demons don't know as much as you do. I was simply curious."

"It's stupid. You're going to laugh."

"And why would I do that?" Lilith raised a hand to examine her perfectly clawed nails. "According to Luz, I am dead inside and Edalyn believes I'm not capable of doing such an action."

"Fine. But only because you would get it." King narrowed his eyes at her, "And if you betray my trust, you will face my wrath and I will send my minions to attack."

"Fair."

The demon suddenly sobered as he realized he was going to have to fulfill his part of the agreement. He stood awkwardly for a moment, trying to figure out how to start the conversation as Lilith waited patiently. He gave a quick sigh and proceeded to spill his guts to witch he was beginning to trust.

"So... I thought maybe that if I offered something useful, people would like that. They would appreciate that. Appreciate _me_...you know? So what better than the King of Demons bestowing lessons onto others about the demon world?" A soft sigh escaped him, "But no one was ever willing to listen. I barely got Luz to listen."

"But you continue attempting to install your teachings into her because it brings you joy."

"Yeah...but things right now are...sorta-"

"Tense?"

"Lilith." King narrowed his eyes at her, "Tense would be you and Eda getting into a minor fight over something stupid like socks. Luz can't sleep due to nightmares, Eda's trying to navigate life without her insane powers, the only one who sees you in the day is me because you're drowning yourself between trying to figure out why Belos wanted the portal and trying to find a way to cure the curse, meanwhile I'm trying to fit into this chaos and somehow fix everything that's broken because no one else will! Everything has fallen to pieces and..." The demon sighed, "I'm sor-"

"Don't apologize." King blinked at her in surprise. Lilith's voice was hard yet comforting. "If anyone will apologize it's me. It's my fault."

"No." King shook his head, "you don't get it."

"Then explain it so I can understand." The witch gave him a pleading look. She wasn’t going to push him if he didn't want to talk.

"You know the day...when you captured Eda and stuff and used Luz as live bait?" He continued to speak before Lilith could turn the conversation into one of self-hatred. "Do you know where I was?" The demon scoffed as he plopped himself down on the counter, "Sitting in a cake waiting for Luz to come home to surprise her..." he frowned and his voice dropped to the softest she's ever heard from him, "I didn't even know Eda had left."

"I-"

"And then the day we rescued Eda... I did nothing." King sighed in defeat, "Luz did all the work, and you were the one who helped steer us in the right direction." The demon leaned forward a bit to rest his paws against his face. He sighed sadly as he looked up at the witch staring at him with an unreadable look. "Luz is becoming a powerful witch in her own right, Eda used to be scary powerful and once she gets the hang of using magic Luz's way she'll get to that point, Hooty can take out threats, you still have some magic and people fear you, and then there's me. Who can't take anyone bigger than me in a fight, gets used as a hostage, and I'm surrounded by people who are strong and powerful and I'm... _not_. I couldn't stop you from entering the room where Eda was being held when Luz tried to save her, I wasn't able to keep Luz safe...it’s like I'm useless."

"But your actions kept me alive." Lilith reminded him softly, "I'm here because of you."

"Wheh?" He blinked in surprise, "But Luz was the one who-"

"Luz wasn't in the cage with me when Edalyn attempted to attack me." Lilith crossed her arms, "Do you not remember my sister saying that she would tear me to pieces for what I've done before I could be Petrified?"

"Of course I remember. I was there!" King huffed.

"Then you remember jumping in front of me to protect me from the attack, do you not?"

"...yes... but what does that have to do-"

"You've seen Edalyn's transformed state...you know how strong she is."

"She breaks things and has really scary strong jaws."

"My sister never had consciousness in that state. So I want you to imagine Edalyn's transformed state with consciousness. Would you say she would know how strong she was?"

"No? I mean...Eda doesn't remember what happens when she's the Owl Beast."

"Exactly. There's no possible way she would've been able to determine her strength...she was restrained the whole time."

"She could've seriously hurt you!" King gasped out in surprise.

"Thanks to you, she didn't," Lilith nodded in appreciation.

"But-"

"You sell yourself short, King." The witch offered him a small smile, "You may not be a powerful witch or a fighter, but you're needed." She glanced down, "You've kept my sister company for who knows how long, the devotion you have to Luz is loyalty that can't be broken, and defended me when I didn't deserve it. And even if you had hurt them by accident, you managed to fix it and make the right choices. You're important to them." Her voice dropped and if not for how close he was to her, he would've missed the next part. "And me as well."

King blinked in surprise before hopping off the counter and wrapping his small arms around Lilith's leg. He nearly cackled at how stiff the witch got.

"W-what are you doing?"

"You know that parallel arm thing Eda and Luz do all the time?"

"...yes?"

"It's called a hug."

"It's an attack."

"Just lift me on the counter."

"Why do you want me to-"

A sudden beeping of the oven cut the conversion off. King watched as Lilith's blue magic surrounded the tray and lifted it out of the oven and onto the counter. He really wished he knew Lilith's secret of baking sooner. The cupcakes were radiating the smell of warm chocolate and it took at least three gentle whacks to the paw to keep him from trying to eat one.

"You're mean," King pouted as Lilith stuck the crumb-free toothpick into the last cupcake.

"So I've been told," her tone was laced with amusement and King was grateful she was beginning to come out of the shadow she loved to hide behind.

"All I want is a cupcake." He pointed an accusing claw in her direction, "I demand you give the King of Demons a cupcake!"

"If you're going to keep acting like this, I'll give the insufferable house demon your cupcake," she smirked as she tossed the toothpick to the side and brought the cupcakes out of the tray.

"You won't let me nap in your hair, you refused to let me feed Hooty your straightener, and now you won't let me have a cupcake!" He let out a groan of frustration, "This is treason, Lilith! _Treason_!"

The demon let out a few whines of frustration before a high-pitched sound escaped him. King continued his "Squeak of Rage" and Lilith couldn’t believe how the demon managed to sound like a tea kettle whistling.

King's rage squeaking came to a halt as an unfamiliar sound reached his ears. He turned to realize that a soft yet muffled melodic sound came from the witch who had a hand over her mouth in an attempt to hide her laughter.

"What was _that_?" Lilith asked with her voice slightly higher due to the lack of oxygen from laughing so hard.

"Eda calls it my Squeak of Rage." King shrugged as Lilith took a few deep breaths to calm herself.

"It's hilarious."

"I know."

"Would you like a cupcake now?"

"Do I get to frost it?"

"Go right ahead."

"You have to do one with me for being a meanie."

"Fine."

* * *

The sugar crash came sooner than either of them would've liked, and King now knew a deadly secret of the newest addition to the Owl House. Apparently, Lilith had a sweet tooth that could easily be exploited to gain access to homemade cupcakes. He found that out when the witch practically drowned her cupcake in an elegant mountain of frosting and sprinkles.

"If I ask you to make more cupcakes will you?" King asked as he uncurled himself from his ball position. He stood on the witch’s lap, which was becoming one of his favorite napping spots.

"Not today," Lilith sighed softly as she leaned her head back against the couch, "too late." She shut her eyes and prayed to Titan that the headache she would awake to wouldn't be horrible.

A soft weight in the crook of her neck and the small arms that were resting on her shoulders caused her to crack an eye open and lazily glance down at the demon leaning against her.

"King? What are you doing?"

"Hugging you."

"Why?"

"For what you said earlier. Thanks." He looked up to narrow his eyes at her, "But don't go around telling people I said that. I have a reputation to uphold."

"Of course. We can't have others finding out you thanked me," Lilith scoffed in amusement.

The witch closed her eyes again and before she could drift off to sleep King shifted and he latched onto her left arm, forcing her to hold him.

"I'm hugging your arm."

"I noticed."

"You know... for someone who walks around acting like the embodiment of death and darkness, you're a softie."

"Am not."

"Then why haven't you pushed me off?"

"It would be rude."

"Lies! You like hugs."

"It's an attack."

"Just admit it, you like them."

"Your attack strategy is weak."

"Lilith Clawthorne is a softie. I can see it in your failure to hide your smile."

"...they're not horrible."

"I knew it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since this is a one-shot collection fic, I'm leaving this open. I might come back to this...someday. But I'm leaving it incomplete for now as I'm not sure what to do with it.


	3. A Fight, a Fall, and Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lilith tries to win against Eda without magic and it goes as well as expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been meaning to come back to this fic for a while but could never figure out where to go with it. So last night I stayed up and wrote this because inspiration can hit like a bucket of cold water.

"This is a stupid idea and someone is going to get hurt," King huffed as he glanced up at the dark-haired witch next to him. "And I honestly can't wait for it to blow up in your face."

He knew he should be grateful that she didn’t threaten to shave him right then and there. Lilith had less of a temper than he did when her buttons were pressed and she had given him the privilege of knowing what they were. The only other person who knew was Eda, so he considered it an honor.

However, as close as he had gotten to the traitor Clawthorne, old habits seemed to die hard. He didn't know where the idea came from and honestly considered whacking Lilith over the head with a staff of common sense because she somehow got it in her thick skull that she could beat Eda without using magic. But at least the sisters were apparently on speaking terms. He could accept the progress and hopefully nudge Lilith to talk things out with everyone...or at the most, work up the courage to apologize. Well...that really depended on the outcome of the match.

He had expected a fistfight. Maybe even a card game or racing on staffs to see who could go the fastest.

To say that a capture the flag game at the Knee was a terrible idea was an understatement. Lilith wasn't strong enough to face any unforeseen dangers, should she run into any, and Eda had no magic to protect herself. On top of that, practically everyone knew that no matter what the case, Eda would always win against her sister...unless it came to terrible ideas that would only fail. Lilith was the current record holder for the terrible idea of "cursing your sister to beat her in a fight."

And when he tried to remind Lilith about her terrible track record when it came to battles with Eda, she had snapped at him.

"If I wanted to talk to a pest, I would be talking to that damned house demon of Edalyn's."

He knew what it was like to be shoved to the side. He knew that she knew he hated being treated like that.

So that's how she wanted to play it.

"Fine, fine. Don't listen to me," he narrowed his eyes as she refused to look at him, "but everyone knows that you can't beat Eda! So why not try out another curse?"

It was a low blow, he knew that. It slipped out. But in all fairness, he was trying to help her keep whatever lame excuse of pride she had intact. So he knew he deserved whatever she said next.

"Why don't you actually try cleaning up your own mess?"

It was cold, sharp, and he was instantly reminded of the Lilith who spent hours straightening her hair and stiffened at his hugs. He hated it.

"Good luck trying to beat Eda."

"I'll prove to you that I can."

The demon felt an uneasiness pool in his stomach as she spun on her heels with a newfound grace and left. It was fine. Lilith left to lick her wounds...it was a lie he couldn't force himself to believe. Not when the foreboding feeling clawing at his throat reminded him of when Eda had been captured. Something was about to happen. Something bad.

* * *

King sat on Lilith’s staff, hovering at least thirty feet off the ground so he could view the makeshift arena of the Knee where the sisters were currently rushing to find the other's flag and bring it back to their respective sides. Eda had chosen a snow-covered stump that was directly in the open, practically screaming at everyone that it was a trap and anyone stupid enough to grab it was an idiot. Well, if Lilith didn’t hit her head from falling onto the ice surrounding the stump then at least whatever traps Eda set up would stop her from getting the flag. King wondered if the flag was even there. For all he knew, Eda could have it on her.

They didn't have set rules.

He saw Lilith approach Eda's section, looking a little bit too smug and he rolled his eyes. He really needed to talk to her about the "If Edalyn can do it, so can I" mentally when it came to competitiveness.

Lilith was crossing the ice, and considering she didn't immediately eat it, he saw it as a win. But it felt wrong. Something was off and it wasn't Eda's hidden traps.

The demon drew closer to her, deciding to be a little petty and passive-aggressively hint that she's a major idiot.

He never got the chance to.

King heard the crack of the ice before he saw it. And only had a second to react to Lilith’s yelp before the witch fell directly through into the frozen water.

"LILITH!"

* * *

"Think. Think. Think!" The demon muttered to himself as he stood at the edge of the lake, attempting to pull together a plan that wouldn't endanger both Lilith and himself. He had sent Lilith’s staff flying towards Eda and Luz to alert them something was wrong just a second ago-wait. It's been five seconds since she had fallen through. Lilith hadn't come up to the surface.

What if she was trapped under the ice?

He counted to two and his heart twisted. Eda and Luz wouldn't get here in time and Lilith still hadn't come up. Every second she spent in the water was a second closer to death. Heck, if Lilith died on him he would drag her back from the dead to kill her himself. Wait...

"This is stupid," King gulped uneasily as he came up with a plan. He silently prayed to whatever was listening that this one wouldn't blow up in his face. The price of failure would be Lilith and he wasn't willing to pay it.

Lilith had fallen in a few steps away from where he was standing, and the demon easily took notice that his weight didn't make the fragile ice sensitive to him. There was really only one option. And he knew if the roles were switched, Lilith would've done this without a second thought.

"You better not be dead."

The freezing water below greeted him with open arms.

* * *

He doesn't think he's ever seen her this peaceful. She doesn't have her eyes slightly scrunched together as if she could shut out the entire world. Her hair, usually more voluminous as of recent but she had straightened it for today, was an inky cloud around her as she continued her slow descent into the deep abyss below them. While a very beautiful image, he knew full well that this would haunt his nightmares.

He swam toward her back, thankful that most of her hair was out of the way, so he could bite down on her hood and pull her back up to the surface.

Somehow, breaking the surface of the water felt worse than jumping in. He could hear the concerned, but frantic, shouts of Eda and Luz and if he could've sighed in relief, he would've.

Eda had practically thrown them back to safety and King didn't miss the way the younger Clawthorne paled at the lack of resistance from her sister. He felt Luz pick him up and wasn't aware he had been shivering until the teenager wrapped him in her scarf, shoved his head under her chin, and tapped on a fire glyph to warm him up.

"Is Lilith okay?" Luz didn't shrink back at the mention of the witch who had nearly killed her. Instead, her eyes were glossed over and King knew it was bad.

He went in there to bring her back and she might not even come back. He needed her to come back. She meant too much to him to let her go. And as a selfish creature by nature, he held onto what was his and would only let it go if it was taken from his hands. Lilith was his friend and she couldn’t leave, not yet.

"There's fire glyphs on the ground trying to warm her up. Eda's trying CPR."

The quiet sobs and muffled prayers that reached his ears only filled the dread that his fear was coming true. Lilith may not come back.

"Is it working?"

If Luz said yes, there was hope. If she said no, then he wasn't sure what he would do.

"I don't-"

A faint sound reached his ears. One King would describe it as something similar to Hooty giving Eda the mail.

That's all he needed to squirm out of Luz's grip, despite the cold air biting at his shivering form, and run over to the dark-haired witch and tackle her in a hug as Luz released a sigh of relief and Eda flopped backward with her hands over her face.

Everything about her was cold but he couldn't bring himself to care. He wagged his tail as his arms rested by her neck as he was too small to hug her properly.

_I'm so glad you're alive. I'm sorry._

Her hands, free of the gloves, came up to stroke his damp fur and ignore the ice-cold droplets that were stuck in it.

_I'm sorry too._

* * *

"Hey," Lilith gently poked the demon curled up into her side as she laid in bed, surrounded by at least seven blankets that she shared with King.

"If you're waking me for something stupid, then I swear I am breaking your straightener first thing tomorrow morning and I dump your tea bags into hot water and put them back in the box." There was an adorable little huff and Lilith smirked.

"I just wanted to say thank you."

"Oh, yeah, you're welcome for being right." It was sarcastic but she heard the bitterness within his words.

"That too, but I meant to thank you for jumping into freezing water to drag me out of it." She felt his entire form stiffen.

"You would've done the same for me." They both know it's true but he still didn't relax.

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah? Well, you better be. I thought you-"

"I'm sorry for snapping at you. I was out of line. And I'm sorry."

"That makes two of us."

Why was he still mad?

"Did something happen?"

"No?" Sarcasm was dripping from the demon's voice. "Not at all."

"You would usually be relishing in the fact that this is the second time you've saved my life." She raised an eyebrow, "Surprised that you aren't demanding I make you cupcakes."

"Not in the mood."

"Alright. What's wrong?" Lilith blinked in surprise when King stood up.

"Hmm, do you want me to start with the fact you should've listened to me or the fact that I had to practically drag up your lifeless body because some idiot refused to listen to me?!"

"I said I was sor-"

"I don't care that you didn't listen, I'm mad at the fact that you nearly died. Your ambition to outshine Eda practically killed you and you can't even care about that."

"Well-"

"Do you really think we want you dead?"

Silence fell upon them and the demon crossed his arms.

"Lilith."

"Edalyn did say in the cage that-"

"That's not relevant. Not anymore. You didn't see them. Luz looked like she saw you die in front of her. You probably just added another trauma to her list of stuff a kid shouldn't be dealing with-"

"It-"

"I'm. Not. Done." He narrowed his eyes at her, "And Eda. I didn't need to look at her to know she was crying. I could hear it." The next words that he shot at her nearly froze her heart. "That was the first time in my life I ever heard her pray."

"I'm sorry." How was she even supposed to react to that?

"Don't tell me you're sorry." He flopped back down beside her and didn't protest when she began stroking his fur.

"I don't know what else to do. I don't know how to fix this."

"Fix what?"

"You're mad at me."

"Yeah...but that's because you're an idiot with no regard for her own well-being. But umm...I'm glad you're still alive." He huffed, "But you need to fix something."

"What do I need to do?"

"You need to talk to Eda."


End file.
